Miss Independent No More
by The Rish
Summary: Mia decides that maybe love isn't such a bad thing after all, but maybe she decides a little too late. Mia/Diego oneshot.


"Hey, Kitten," Diego suddenly halted at Mia's office door as he hurried along to his own office, and he tapped his palm against the door frame to gain her attention. Looking up from the case file she was studying intently, her face expressed alarm, not unlike a deer in the headlights, which quickly softened as she recognized Diego's dark, broad face.

"Mister Armando," Mia responded but said nothing more, in anticipation of the next words to fall from his lips.

"Good luck in court tomorrow." This time, he rapped his fist on the door frame and pursed his lips as though he wanted to say more; but with a slight hesitation in his movements, he moved on toward his office.

Mia sat quietly at her desk, staring at the empty space in her doorway that Diego Armando had so recently occupied—and so quickly vacated. She could still see him there—tall, tanned, dark hair wild and untamed as he. And she could still hear his deep voice grow quiet with veiled emotion.

She knew Mr. Armando was in love with her. With everything in her, she could hear it in his voice, see it in his eyes, feel it in his touch. At first, she understood his attention and affections to be from a deep bond she had formed with her mentor. But as time passed, Mia began noticing the simple changes in him. His smile was just a little more crooked, with half the smugness but twice the charm; the carnivorous and mischievous twinkle in his eye softened to a pale and distant starlight; his touches lingered on her shoulder just a little longer, light and delicate, almost the caress of a lover.

As she sat dwelling on these thoughts, she heard a distant and muffled exchange between Diego and Mr. Grossberg.

"…late lunch, Mister Armando?" "Up yours." "Very well, th…"

She couldn't help but smile. Brash, stubborn, rude—all-around unpolished. Yet despite it all, he could be compassionate, caring, thoughtful. Like the flowers and gifts randomly left on her desk, the office birthday party he arranged for her. It seemed that everything he did for her was not only the care of a mentor but also inspired by a deeper feeling akin to love.

And Mia, long-beholden to the ideology that the Independent Young Woman should not be tethered by a man and the fanciful whims of love, found herself beginning to take a 'so what?' approach to the matter. Just because she found her niche as an energetic and ambitious young woman didn't mean she couldn't find a balance between that and a deep, passionate, need-you-want-you-can't-live-without-you, always-and-forever type of love. Ah, it seemed Mr. Armando had rubbed off on her more than she realized. Ever the determined one, he always seemed to get what he wanted and found proper justification and balance for it. His coffee addiction was somehow allowed to be put on display in the courtroom, yet he never let his java fiending deter him from the case. Not even for a second.

Balance, justification, ideologies with no founding… Mia shook the thoughts from her head and, slamming the case file shut, jumped up from her desk and ran to the door. Just as she poked her head out into the hallway, she saw Diego locking up his office, coat and briefcase in hand.

"Going home?" Mia said lightly. "I thought you had to finish the paperwork from your case yesterday."

Diego smiled as he walked toward her. "Already finished, Kitten. After that trial, I deserve to call it a day early. How's yours going?"

Leaning against the doorframe, Mia sighed. "I'm taking a break. This is a tough case to crack."

"You're approaching it the wrong way, Kitten. Let's get some coffee, and we'll talk about it." Diego pushed off the wall and offered his free arm out to Mia, in hopes she would step easily into his embrace. She did, allowing him to envelop her in his strong arm, and they walked down the hall together.

"So, who is the victim again?"

"Valerie Hawthorne. A police officer."

"Is your client innocent?"

"I-I'm not sure…"

"It's only natural to have doubts sometimes, Kitten… You'll learn that with experience. This is your first case, after all..."


End file.
